It’s time to talk about how to design a college lifestyle to get the most out of your sleep time. As we know, being a college student requires independence and responsibility all day long … every day: go to class, do homework, pass tests, etc., plus the added challenges of managing money and resources each month. If you’re lucky, maybe parents and scholarships help, but it’s really hard to be independent and responsible while also getting enough sleep.
This is how to design a daily system that allows you to find and protect sleep time every day, so that you can succeed in college and achieve your goals at WSU:
1. Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day
When you’re in college, it’s nice to have no one forcing you to go to bed early—or wake up early! College students have the opportunity to participate in as many late-night events as they want and sleep in as often as they want to. However, if you neglect a consistent bedtime routine, academic performance can suffer in the long run. Many students work all night on their schoolwork and forget how to sleep, which can have a severe impact on their emotional, intellectual, and physical mood. Therefore, setting a goal to go to bed at the same time every day is essential as sleeping well and waking up energized requires a regular bedtime. Your body has a biological schedule; it is not healthy to disrupt it by changing your bedtime every day. To stay in balance, your body’s circadian mechanism needs regularity, which allows you to feel fully refreshed daily when you wake up.
2. Learn to wind down before bed
Everyone must be in the right space in order to sleep well. So, before going to bed, avoid doing anything that can irritate you or get you excited. Make sure you learn how to relax your body and mind so that you’re ready to fall asleep. To start, reduce the light in your bedroom to allow your body to adjust to a more relaxed environment. Also, always “unplug” from technology 30 minutes before bedtime to let your brain relax. The temperature in your room should not be too hot or too cold: ideal room temperature for falling asleep is around 65 degrees, depending on the weather. Listening to relaxing music, meditating, reading an easy-to-read book, or journaling all can be part of a healthy bedtime ritual to help you relax and fall asleep. Find your ideal routine and stick to it for the best sleep!
3. Don’t drink alcohol or caffeine before bedtime
This is critical, because these habits unintentionally may disturb your nightly sleep quality. Caffeine can make it hard for you to fall asleep while keeping you from getting into a deep-sleep cycle. Once you’ve established a successful sleep routine, avoid consuming alcohol 6 hours before bedtime; it too hurts the chances for deep sleep through the full night. If you choose to have a cup of tea, avoid green or black tea as they still contain caffeine. However, warm milk or herbal teas (chamomile, lemon ginger, etc.) can be consumed as a part of your sleep routine. These beverages assist in relaxing us more readily in the evening.
